Laskey Lemon Soda with Bay Ice Cubes

In 2010, Ruth Laskey, a talented artist who weaves hand-dyed threads into graphic shapes, was one of the Bay Area artists chosen for the biennial SECA (Society for the Encouragement of Contemporary Art) award and whose work would be featured at SFMOMA. She also happened to be Leah's classmate from the California College of the Arts. Thrilled to collaborate with an artist as she produced her work, we arranged a studio visit to see the weavings Ruth was creating for the show. She had a series of six sketches, each with two intersecting shapes of different colors, and she had started weaving the pieces based on her sketches. I suggested assigning a flavor to each color, and where the colors overlapped, so would the flavors. We decided that a liquid of one flavor chilled with ice cubes of a second flavor would be an interesting approach: as the ice cubes melted, the flavors would slowly overlap.

My good friend Paul Einbund, an extraordinary sommelier and a genius at making seasonal sodas, taught us how to make a concentrated syrup by muddling an ingredient with sugar, adding cold water, and then chilling the mixture to allow the flavor to infuse. When sparkling water is added to the concentrate, the result is a lightly sweetened soda with pure flavor.

Leah discovered that just about anything could be given this treatment—from fresh fruit and herbs to licorice candy, and even bubblegum—giving us limitless options for homemade sodas. I like to use standard Eureka lemons in this recipe because I prefer their classic, extra-sour flavor, but Meyer lemons will also work.

We created a soda and ice cube combination for each of the six weavings created for the SECA exhibition, from her larger twill series, and rotated through them on a daily basis: peppermint soda with licorice ice cubes for the blue/black weaving, green pepper soda with orange blossom ice cubes for the orange/green, chokecherry soda with rose ice cubes for the two-toned pink weaving, bubblegum soda with violet ice cubes for the pink/purple, hibiscus soda with eucalyptus ice cubes for the magenta/green, and lemon soda with bay ice cubes for the yellow/green.

We served each drink on a custom wood tray made for us by the installation crew at the SFMOMA. Stained to match the frames around Ruth's weavings, the tray held the glass and two small vials containing threads used in the artwork that had been scented to correspond with the flavors in the drink. With visual, taste, and olfactory components, the Laskey sodas offered guests a multisensory experience and a direct connection to the art, and they were our most conceptual creations to date.

Preparation

To make the lemon soda concentrate, combine the zest and sugar in a mortar and crush with a pestle until fragrant, moist, and tinted yellow.

Transfer the mixture to a small pitcher or lidded container and pour in the lemon juice and water. Stir until the sugar dissolves. Cover and refrigerate, agitating the mixture from time to time, until cold and infused with lemon flavor, about 2 hours.

To make the ice cubes, combine the water, sugar, and bay leaves in a small saucepan and bring to a boil, stirring to help the sugar dissolve. Boil for 1 minute, remove from the heat, and let stand for 20 to 30 minutes.

Strain the infused water through a fine-mesh sieve set over a liquid measuring cup. Pour into ice cube molds, and freeze until solid, about 2 hours.

To serve, place 3 to 5 ice cubes in each of eight 8-ounce drinking glasses, and then add 3 tablespoons (or more, to taste) of lemon concentrate per drink. Pour in 1/2 cup (4.3 oz / 120 g) of the sparkling water per serving and stir gently. Serve immediately.

Do Ahead: The ice cubes can be made in advance and stored in an airtight container in the freezer for up to 3 months. The soda concentrate can be made up to 1 week ahead and stored in an airtight container in the refrigerator.

Above and Beyond: At the museum, we use small half-sphere silicone molds to make flavored ice cubes, but any ice cube tray will work. Keep in mind, though, the smaller the cubes, the quicker they'll melt, and the sooner the flavors will merge in the drink. A small piece of bay leaf can be added to the cube for additional flavor and a pretty pop of color. Scented textile threads might be impossible to make at home, but my friend Daniel Patterson, chef-owner of Coi restaurant in San Francisco, came up with a great way of incorporating aromas while eating or drinking. Just dab a drop of lemon and bay essential oil (see Resources) on your wrist, and when you bring the glass to your mouth, you'll take in the fragrance.

A self-taught baker and longtime owner of the San Francisco cake and sweets shop, Miette, Caitlin Freeman was inspired to bake by the confectionary painter Wayne Thiebaud. After selling Miette in 2008, she started the pastry program at Blue Bottle Coffee Co. and coauthored The Blue Bottle Craft of Coffee. Her artistic creations for the Blue Bottle Café at the San Francisco Museum of Modern Art have been featured in the New York Times, Design Sponge, Elle Decor, San Francisco Chronicle, Huffington Post, and more. She lives in San Francisco, California.